Head of the Republican People’s Party (CHP), Özgür Özel, strongly criticized the wave of investigations and arrests targeting opposition municipalities, claiming they are politically motivated and based on fabricated charges.
Özel claimed that corruption files involving AKP-run municipalities have been left untouched for years. “I’ll reveal them on Tuesday,” he said. “There are [AKP] municipalities the Court of Accounts explicitly called for action against.”
Referring to the investigation concerning a phone that was found and allegedly belonged to Ekrem İmamoğlu, Özel said, “Even Graham Bell wasn’t this thrilled when he invented the phone. What they were after was a secret phone. They found it – completely empty. No calls, no WhatsApp. It’s just an old number. You’ll be left licking your palms – you got excited for nothing.”
He also accused the government of using arrests and investigations not to uncover wrongdoing but to shape public opinion. The detention of İmamoğlu’s long-time chief of security, he said, was emblematic of this strategy: “Whatever they find, they double it. This is nothing but manipulation of public perception.”
Speaking about the trial of Ahmet Özer’s, Özel said the former mayor’s real “crime” was winning a key municipality, receiving Kurdish votes, and contributing to the AKP’s electoral loss: “Why is Ahmet Özer in custody? Because he won Esenyurt, got votes from Kurds, and made the AKP lose. This isn’t a crime under Turkish law, but it’s being punished as if it were.”
Özel questioned the lack of public access to Özer’s trial and challenged state broadcaster TRT: “If everything is within the law, why not show it live? The indictment insults the intelligence of anyone who watches.”
Addressing the government’s push for a new constitution, Özel rejected any cooperation with those who “violate the current one for their own power.” He emphasized that a democratic and egalitarian constitution could only be achieved with the people, not with President Erdoğan. He reiterated his call for early elections, saying the ballot box remains the only way out of the country’s political deadlock: “It may be a crisis for Erdoğan, but it’s the only hope for the people.”
Ahmet Özer appears before a judge for the first time
Today, Ahmet Özer appeared before a judge for the first time in nearly seven months at Silivri Prison. Standing trial at the Istanbul 14th Heavy Penal Court on charges of “membership in an armed organization,” Özer entered the courtroom to applause. His defense lasted an hour and a half.
Özer was arrested on October 30, 2024, and a trustee was appointed by the government to replace him.
“PKK is no longer an active organization”
Ahmet Özer’s lawyer, Prof. Dr. Hasan Sınar, argued in his defense that “The PKK has dissolved itself. It no longer exists as an active organization. Therefore, the material element of the alleged crime has also disappeared. At this point, pursuing punishment based on this charge serves no social purpose.”
In his own defense, Ahmet Özer stated, “The allegations in this case are filled with assumptions and prejudice. A peace process is underway with the organization. I am not requesting release because of this process, but in the name of justice.”
(EMK/DT)
